1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to casino card games.
2. Description of the Related Art
Baccarat is one of the many live table games played in casinos or gaming establishments. Typically, Baccarat uses a standard deck of 52 playing cards and is usually dealt from a shoe having multiple decks that have been shuffled together prior to the beginning of the play.
The object of the game of Baccarat is for the bettor to successfully wager on whether the Bank's hand or the Player's hand is going to win. The bettor receives even money for his wager if he selects the winning hand and loses his wager if he selects the losing hand. Because of the rules of play of Baccarat and more particularly the pre-established draw rules, the Bank's hand has a slightly higher chance of winning than does the Player's hand. The winning frequency for the Bank's hand has been determined to be 0.45859 (45.859%) whereas the winning frequency for the Player hand is 0.44624 (44.624%) with the remainder of the outcomes being ties. Therefore, if the bettor wagers on the Bank's hand and the Bank hand wins, the bettor must usually pay to the gaming establishment a commission (typically, 5%) of the amount the bettor wins, in order to compensate for the Bank's edge. No commission is paid if the bettor successfully wagers on the Player's hand.
After the wagers have been placed, two cards each are dealt as the banker's hand and as a general player hand representing all players. Elaborate rules exist called “third card draw” rules, or simply draw rules, wherein the banker's hand, the player hand, or both, are required to draw a third card based on the values of the two-card hands.
Typically, the baccarat third card draw rules are mandatory, and are as follows. If the initial two-card player hand has a point total of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5, the player hand must draw a third card. If the initial two-card player hand has a point total of 6-9, the player hand stands and does not receive a third card.
If the player hand stands and does not draw a third card, then the bank hand follows the draw rule above.
If the player hand draws a third card, then the bank hand must draw or stand as follows. If the bank hand two-card point total is 0-2, the bank must always draw. If the bank hand two card point total is 3, then the bank hand must draw when the player hand's third card is 0-7 or 9, and the bank must stand if the player hand third card is 8. If the bank hand two card point total is 4, then the bank hand must draw when the player hand's third card is 2-7, and the bank must stand if the player hand's third card is 0, 1, 8 or 9. If the bank hand two card point total is 5, then the bank hand must draw when the player hand's third card is 4-7, and the bank must stand if the player hand's third card is 0-3, 8 or 9. If the bank hand two card point total is 6, then the bank hand must draw when the player hand's third card is 6 or 7, and the bank must stand if the player hand's third card is 0-5, 8 or 9. If the bank hand two card point total is 7-9, then the bank always stands.
As can be imagined from the above rules, baccarat may be intimidating to inexperienced players. Furthermore, the game is time consuming as following these complicated rules and calculating the commissions take a long time and interrupt the flow of the game, thus, preventing the casino from reaching the game's full profit potential and annoying the casino patrons. In addition to being complicated and time consuming, the baccarat game, as known, offers limited options and variations to the players and the casino on how to play the game.
Thus, there is a need for a new casino card game using simplified rules such that more rounds can be played in a given amount of time and offering additional and more attractive playing variations and betting options to the patrons of the casino so that they get more excited about the game, feel more in control, and as a consequence and in the same time, the casino increases its profits.